平衡點

中庸之為德也，甚至矣乎！
---《論語 · 庸也》

隨著時代的發展變化，儒家思想的「中庸之道」也在演變發展中不斷影響和啟示著眾多人的思維觀念。不拘泥、不偏激，去其兩端，取其中而用之。旨在把握事物核心的基礎上，尋求一種平衡的智慧。

此次參展的五位藝術家，均來自70、80年代出生的臺灣本土藝術家，其藝術極具時代特色和代表性。時代更替、經濟發展、文化交融、環境變遷等影響和賦予了這些同期藝術家們不同的生命感悟與創作風格。直接或間接、主動或被動、在場或離場、介入或邊緣，成為藝術家們選擇與這個世界不同的對話和交流方式。但相同的是，他們都在自己的語境下找到了一種平衡點，並不斷研究與前行。

人與自然
自然作為人類生存的依託環境，除了給予我們最基礎的物質生存條件，賦予我們更多的是對生命的思考，進而激發人類的哲學思維及創造力。黃敏俊多年來對光影及色彩的研究，以及《殘荷入夢》系列，是自省的過程，更是對生命的感悟、共存的思考。侯忠穎將微觀的「手」作為其創作的主要載體，創造了全新的宇宙觀，包括人文情懷、自然環境，以及人與自然之間的關係。盛與衰、融與裂，是感悟更是啟示：人與自然終將合一。

人與社會
人作為社會的產物，無法脫離社會而獨立存在。因而個人與群體之間的關係一直是眾多藝術家無法繞開的一個話題。當下科技飛速發展，資訊交互無界限的同時，人類之間的隱私及安全性被打破。從《人造安全地》到《天使》系列，蔡士弘一直以一種超現實的經驗游離在真實與虛幻的邊界，通過將不同的文化視角、物質觀念及生活形態拆解與重建，以「旁觀」方式游離在這個虛幻的邊界（平衡點）上，冷靜、感性，積極面對又隨時退場。尤瑋毅則認為每個人都擁有顯性（外在）和隱性（內在）兩種性格。從《廁所文化》到《彩虹文化》再到《‘遊’戲人間》，藝術家從研究性格的兩面（或多面）性，逐漸映射到對社會的思考，對切片式資訊的質疑，從而再回歸到哲學的角度來闡釋。真與假，虛與實，雖客觀存在，但也應保持質疑，在不斷的交互當中尋求一種平衡。

人與自身
「唯天下至誠，為能盡其性。」傅作新近年來的創作多來自藝術家內心對生命的體悟，最終轉換成不同的元素體現在其作品當中。如藝術家所言：「太過關注外在的世界容易在這多變的世界裡迷失自己，只有回歸自己的本心才能使自己的作品更真實與單純。」如何在多變的社會洪流中尋求一絲永恆，藝術家仿佛從自然界不語的樹木上得到了啟發，以不變應萬變，回歸最原始最單純的自然狀態。 黑白與絢麗、虛空留白與複雜堆砌，在喧鬧、嘈雜中尋求一種單純、寧靜、平和的平衡。

「中」通好，庸為「用」。藝術家們在自己的專業領域，用專屬的藝術語言和方式嘗試對這個社會發出有效的聲音。正所謂“中不偏，庸不易”。藝術創作的道路上，他們將持之以恆的堅守著自己的主張和目標，漸行漸遠。

文文文
2017.04.21於北京東大橋
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Balance

Perfect is the Virtue which Accords with the Doctrine of the Mean
—The Analects, Yong Ye

Through the many developments and changes of the times, the Confucian “doctrine of the mean” continually influenced and inspired the ideas of the masses. It tells us not to be sticklers, and not to be extreme, but to find and apply the middle ground. This is the wisdom of seeking the point of balance on the foundation of the core essence of things.

The five artists featured in this exhibition are all from Taiwan, and all born in the 1970s and 80s. Their works are strongly imbued with the traits of their times. Changes of the times, economic development, cultural fusion, environmental degradation, and the other issues affecting the people of this generation resulted in different insights and creative styles among these artists. Direct or indirect, active or passive, present or absent, involved or on the margins, these are the different ways in which these artists chose to engage with the world. They share, however, in that they have all found a balance in their own contexts, and constantly research and move forward.

People and Nature
Nature is the environment upon which mankind depends for survival. Aside from providing us with the basic material conditions for survival, it also provides us with much to ponder about life, which inspires philosophical thought and creativity. Huang Mingchun’s research of light and color over the years, and his series The Dream of Withered Lotus have been a process of introspection, but even more a process of insight into life and thinking on shared existence. Chungying Hou’s “hands”are one of the main carriers of his creations. They have created an entirely new view of the cosmos, including humanist sentiments, the natural environment, and the relationships between mankind and nature. Flourishing and decline, fusion and rupture, these are insights and revelations: humanity and nature are, and always will be, one and the same.

People and Society
People are products of society, and can never survive completely independent of it. The relationship between the individual and the group has been an unavoidable topic for innumerable artists. As technology rapidly advances, and communication breaks down all boundaries, human privacy and security have come under fire. From Manmade Safe Place to Angels, Tsai Shih Hung has always straddled the line between reality and fantasy with a surreal experience, dismantling and reconstructing different cultural viewpoints, materials, concepts and states of life. Hovering over this boundary (balance point) into the unreal as an “observer,”he faces it both coldly and emotionally, always ready to retreat. Will Yu, on the other hand, believes that each person has two personalities, a visible (external) one, and a hidden (internal) one. From Bathroom Culture to Rainbow Culture, and on to The Paradise Underneath the Horizontal Line, the artist has gradually progressed from his research of the dual (or multiple) sides of personalities to skepticism of partial information, and eventually back to philosophical interpretation. Though truth and falsehood, reality and illusion all objectively exist, we must maintain skepticism and seek balance in our constant interactions.

People and Self
“Only the most sincere under the sun can fully realize their true nature.” Many of Fu Tso-Hsin’s creations in recent years have come from his inner insights into life, which he has transformed into different elements in his artworks. As the artist has said, “When you care too much about the outside world, it is easy to get lost in it. The only way to make true, pure works is to return to your own heart.” In his quest for a thread of timelessness in the constantly shifting torrents of society, the artist seems to have found inspiration in the silence of trees in nature, in the way they respond to change with steadfastness. This is a return to the purest, most primal state of nature. He seeks out a tranquil, peaceful balance between monochrome and brilliant colors, blankness and complex layers, cacophony and silence.

The best balance is found in the application. These artists each work in their unique fields with their singular artistic languages and methods in a shared quest for an effective voice in this society. As they say, true balance is steadfast and unwavering. On the artistic path, they will persist in their views and goals as they move steadily forward.

Text: Wenwen
Dongdaqiao, Beijing, April 21, 2017
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僑福芳草地畫廊 · 台北
策展人：趙文嬌 Amy Zhao
藝術家：傅作新・侯忠穎・黃敏俊・蔡士弘・尤瑋毅
Artists: Fu Tso Hsin, Hou Chung Ying, Huang Ming Chun, Tsai Shih Hung, Will Yu
展期：2017/05/06～06/11
開幕：2017/05/06 4:00 P.M.
地址：台北市大安區仁愛路四段115號1F
電話：+886 2 2777-2585
gallery.tp@parkviewgreen.com